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Help and guidance

Our help and guidance content includes step-by-step guides, downloadable templates and interactive tools to help you run your voluntary organisation

Setting up

Learn about the practical steps you need to take to set up your own organisation

  • Setting up

Deciding to set up a new charitable organisation

Access our guidance to help you decide if you should set up a new charity, voluntary organisation or community group

  • Setting up

Choosing your legal structure

What you need to consider when choosing your legal structure and the main characteristics of different legal structures

  • Setting up

Understanding charity status and registration

Find out what charity status is and if you need to register as a charity

  • Setting up

Understanding social enterprise

Find out about social enterprises and their associated legal structures

  • Setting up

A charity's governing document: What it should include

Find out what information should be included in your charity's governing document

  • Setting up

Running a charity

Guidance and tools to help you run your charity or voluntary organisation

  • Employing and managing staff
  • Setting up
  • Closing down

Employing and managing staff

Practical guidance to help you recruit, manage and develop paid members of staff, including a useful introduction to employment law

  • Employing and managing staff

Statement from NCVO chair, Priya Singh, on the outcomes of investigations into complaints

The board of trustees is committed to NCVO’s equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) and culture change programme.

The civil society group launches to increase collaboration, improve efficiency, effectiveness and streamline engagement

Today sees the launch of The Civil Society Group – an informal collaboration of organisations representing members and groups from across the charity sector and wider civil society.

  • Collaboration

Record membership growth for NCVO and better-than-expected financial performance highlighted in 2021 annual report

Ahead of its Annual General Meeting on 22 November, NCVO today publishes its annual report and financial accounts for the year ending 31 March 2021.

  • Membership

New research examines volunteering policy response in England during the pandemic

A new research briefing published today and authored by the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) examines the government’s policy response to volunteering in England, and its impact, during the covid-19 pandemic.

  • Coronavirus

New research shows increased charity demand for services and support from sector infrastructure organisations during the pandemic

The pandemic has increased demand within the voluntary sector for services and support from charity infrastructure organisations, according to new research released today.

  • Coronavirus

NAVCA to take over volunteer centre quality accreditation from NCVO

NCVO and NAVCA reached an agreement which saw the Volunteer Centre Quality Accreditation (VCQA) transfer to NAVCA from 1 January 2022. This

  • Inside NCVO

NCVO road ahead 2022 helps charities chart route to 'new practicality' amid constant uncertainty

The voluntary sector will have to accept a level of constant uncertainty in 2022, but should still be optimistic about its ability to provide dignity, purpose and hope for society, says NCVO’s Road Ahead 2022.

  • Coronavirus

NCVO statement on third sector article

Our statement in response to today’s (25 January 2022) Third Sector article relating to the investigations into complaints at NCVO, which completed in September 2021.

NCVO and ACEVO call for all charity roles to be advertised as flexible

The voluntary sector needs to lead the way on flexible working and advertise all roles as flexible, with employers encouraging open conversations about how it can work in their organisation.

  • Employing and managing staff

Theory of Change

Learn about Theory of Change as a process and a tool

  • Business planning and strategy

Setting the direction of your organisation

Find out what's involved in setting the direction of your charity

  • Business planning and strategy

Gathering knowledge to assess your situation

Use this section to select the right tools to help you understand your landscape and conditions.

  • Business planning and strategy

SWOT

A guide to help your organisation with your SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis

PESTLE

A guide to help organisations consider how the world is changing

Other players

A guide for your organisation to look at the priorities and impact of other organisations in your area of work

Deciding what you will do and how

Find out about how to select the right tools to help you make good decisions

  • Business planning and strategy

Dual bottom line analysis

A guide to help your organisation explore it's activities to assess the extent to which each contributes to value and surplus

Forcefield analysis

Use this tool to help you identify the forces working for and against a particular option

Even over statements

Use this tool to help your organisation explore tradeoffs

Outcomes and impact measurement (1 day)

Learn how to create an evaluation plan to better understand and demonstrate the difference your work makes

Strategic planning: tools for decision making (1 day)

This course will introduce processes and tools to help ensure that decision-making is responsive to your environment and focused on the most important issues affecting your organisation

Charity finance skills (1 day)

This course will help people with little or no financial background to feel confident in managing day-to-day charity finance

Safeguarding essentials in charities (1 day)

All voluntary organisations have a duty to keep the people they work with safe from harm. This course introduces the basics of safeguarding within a charity context in England and highlights effective safeguarding practice

Theory of change for strategic planning and evaluation (1 day)

Learn how to create your own theory of change and narrative. This course will challenge you to think critically about what you're doing and why

Special volunteering network meeting: Keep volunteering voluntary

A network open to all NCVO members working within the volunteering ecosystem. Have your say on the government's consultation on making volunteering a tool in its immigration proposals.

Managing people in the charity sector (2 days)

This course will equip managers in the voluntary sector with the skills and techniques they need to effectively manage paid members of staff

Good practice in volunteer management (1 day)

This course provides an introduction to the key principles of good volunteer management and how to apply them in your organisation

Designated safeguarding leads in charities (1 day)

This one-day training course provides an overview of the roles and responsibilities of safeguarding leads in charities in England

Charity finance strategy (1 day)

This course will give you an overview of how to build a simple finance strategy. We’ll introduce tools to help you build the financial resilience of your charity